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Last night the Los Angeles Lakers blew out the Orlando Magic in Game One of the 2009 NBA Finals. Eighteen years ago today, the Lakers were on the other end of a championship blowout, this one courtesy of the Chicago Bulls in Game Two of the 1992 NBA Finals. As Chicago was crushing them in the fourth quarter, the Lakers would have a close-up view at what one of the greatest and most celebrated moves in the accomplished career of Michael Jordan. Catching a pass from Cliff Levingston, Jordan took one dribble and soared to the rim. Going up and showing the ball with his right hand, Jordan would see a defender out of the corner of his eye, sweep the ball to his off hand and finish with a graceful and beautiful left-handed layup. Pumping his fist in celebration of his own amazement at the play, Jordan would be mobbed by his teammates after an immediate timeout from the stunned Lakers. Continue on to examine a move by Jordan that was famously described by Marv Albert as “spectacular.”

In what was definitely one of the more memorable moments in his illustrious career chalked full of amazing feats, Michael Jordan shrugged off his surprising three-point stroke against the Portland Trail Blazers 17 years ago today in Game One of the 1992 NBA Finals. While this series figured to intrigue with the much-anticipated matchup between Jordan and Portland’s Clyde Drexler, who had been described by some as the “Michael Jordan of the Western Conference,” it was Chicago’s superstar shooting guard who successfully landed his punches early and often in the series opener. Hitting six threes and scoring an NBA Finals record 35 points in the first half alone, Jordan sparked the Bulls to a resounding 33-point victory in Game One. After nailing three after three in the first half, Jordan displayed his own surprise at his sudden shooting prowess from beyond the arc by turning to NBC’s announcing crew, throwing his hands up in the air and shrugging. Continue on to examine Jordan’s brilliant effort in Game One and how he fared against Drexler in the 1992 NBA Finals.

In order for the Chicago Bulls to win a third straight championship in 1993, the team was going to have to get through the top seeded New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals. That meant winning a game at Madison Square Garden, a task easier said than done. After losing the first two games in New York and then rallying to tie the series with consecutive home wins at the old Chicago Stadium, the Bulls needed to be at their best 16 years ago today to upset the Knicks in Game Five on the road. In a classic game that went back and forth to the nauseating yet thrilling finish, a swarm of Chicago defenders denied Charles Smith at the rim to give the Bulls the series-changing victory. The Bulls would wrap up the series in Game Six at home and then beat the Phoenix Suns in six games in the 1993 NBA Finals to complete its first three-peat. Continue on to examine how Chicago’s defense shocked the Knicks in Game Five and played a huge role in its six championships in the 1990s.

Foreshadowing things to come in future one-on-one match ups, Michael Jordan hit a game-winning jumper over Utah’s Bryon Russell 12 years ago today to give the Bulls a 1-0 lead in the 1997 NBA Finals. While Jordan’s buzzer-beating shot would allow the Bulls to hold serve at home in the first game, Utah nearly pulled a shocker with a gritty performance that may not have resulted in a victory but certainly caught the attention of a flat Chicago team. Had it not been for two missed free throws by Karl Malone in the final seconds (aided by some trash talking by Scottie Pippen), the Jazz should have stolen Game One in this nerve-wrecking series. Continue on to examine Chicago’s toughest challenge in its six NBA Finals appearances, the 1997 series against the Utah Jazz.

In what certainly was not the team’s prettiest effort during its sixth championship run, the Chicago Bulls survived and advanced, as Billy Packer likes to call it, 11 years ago today in a scary Game Seven against the Indiana Pacers in the 1998 NBA Eastern Conference Finals. Trailing by double digits in the first half, Chicago slowly fought its way back into the game and eventually eked out a tight 88-83 victory against the Pacers in what was only the second playoff series in Chicago’s six championship seasons to go the distance. After barely getting past the Pacers, Chicago was pitted by many as an underdog against the Utah Jazz in a rematch of the 1997 NBA Finals. Of course, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and the Bulls would show their championship mettle by knocking off the Jazz in six games in the 1998 NBA Finals. Continue on to examine the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals between the aging Bulls and the upstart Pacers.

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